Manchester United travel to the south coast on Sunday to take on Southampton in what is effectively a dead rubber, as they look to end a miserable campaign on a high note.The Red Devils will take on Southampton in what will surely be Ryan Giggs last game as interim manager, before the impending arrival ofLouis van Gaal as Man United manageronce the season concludes. Languishing in 7th, Manchester United have to beat Southampton and hope Tottenham lose to Aston Villa in-order to claim 6th place, on goal difference.Giggs will be keen to ensure his side finish the season on a high note, before the new manager arrives.Below is the lineup Giggs should go with in-order to defeat Pochettinos Saints.
#1 Goalkeeper: David De Gea
After winning two awards at the annual awards ceremony for the Red Devils yesterday, David De Gea will be keen to finish the season on a high. The Spaniard has been possibly their best player, in a season where not many stood up to be noticed, and he will most certainly start on Sunday to round off a fine season for himself personally. De Gea averages 2.19 saves a game and has a remarkable average claim success rate of 94%. He has helped his side to 12 clean-sheets in the Premier League, two more than Liverpool’s 10.
#2 Right-Back: Chris Smalling
Rafael is likely to be ruled out of the final game of the season and Phil Jones is struggling with a shoulder injury, which could possibly rule him out of the World Cup. Former Fulham defender Chris Smalling will most likely slot in at right-back ahead of Valencia, as Manchester United look to nullify Southampton’s potent attacking force. The young defender has coped well this season and he will need to be on his ‘A game’ if he is to stop the overlapping Shaw and co. Smalling has a pass accuracy of 83% and has created 10 chances from defence this season, also scoring one goal. His strength and clever reading of the game will stand him in good stead when facing the likes of Lallana and Shaw.
#3 Centre-Back: Rio Ferdinand
With Smalling going over to right-back, Ferdinand should really be presented with the chance to play what could be his final game as a Manchester United player. The former Leeds centre-back is unlikely to be offered a new contract and after being left out of the game against Hull, he will be eager to fill in for the trip to the south coast. Ferdinand has made 13 appearances in the Premier League this season and has a pass accuracy of 89%, the highest in the entire Manchester United squad.
#4 Centre-Back: Nemanja Vidic
The club-captain will play his last game for the club as he readies himself for a move to Inter Milan in the summer. Since joining in 2006, Vidic has gone on to prove himself as one of the finest defenders in Europe, let alone for Manchester United. The Serbian said an emotional goodbye to the Old Trafford faithful in their penultimate clash against Hull City on Tuesday, but Giggs should give him one last opportunity to ply his trade. The Serbian makes Manchester United a stronger side and with the tricky Rickie Lambert up-front, Vidic could be the perfect solution to cope with the England international. Vidic has won 50% of his tackles in the Premier League this season and also a remarkable 70% of his aerial duels.
#5 Left-Back: Patrice Evra
Patrice Evra is another one of those whose future is up in the air, with Manchester United offering no signs of presenting the France international with a new contract. Evra’s performances dropped off under David Moyes and there are suggestions now that he may be departing in the summer window for pastures new. Until then, Evra will remain a key player and with Southampton possessing one of the finest left-backs in Luke Shaw, United will need to call on one of their own to produce the goods. In what has been a supposedly disappointing season for Evra, the Frenchman has created 38 chances in the league this season – second to Wayne Rooney (56) and six ahead of Juan Mata (32).
#6 Right-Midfield: Adnan Januzaj
Januzaj was in scintillating form against Hull City during United’s 3-1 win. The Belgian-born talent was mesmeric and Giggs will be seriously considering starting him again, especially with Luke Shaw the opposing left-back.
The England international will aim to get forward as much as possible but with the attacking instincts of Januzaj, Shaw may be restricted in his attempts to get forward.
Januzaj created a stunning 6 chances during the game against Hull, the most he has created in any game this season. He had the highest Squawka Performance Score against Steve Bruce’s men and ran Maynor Figueroa ragged all night.
#7 Central-Midfield: Michael Carrick
It may not be Carrick’s finest season, but he is still a vital mainstay in the middle of the park for United. Southampton have a number of silky craftsmen in midfield in the form of Lallana, Schneiderlin, David and Cork, so the Red Devils will need Carrick to be on his game for this clash.
Carrick has made 60 clearances this season in the league and 79 interceptions. He has also made 10 blocks and his shielding of the back-four will be vital.
#8 Central-Midfield: Marouane Fellaini
The Belgian has had a tough time in his first season at Old Trafford I think it is fair to say, but he hit back at his critics with a good perfomance against Hull on Tuesday. The colossal figure played well for the Red Devils during their routine win and he will be hoping for more of the same against a fast-moving Southampton side.
Fellaini had a marksman like accuracy of 96% at Old Trafford in midweek, misplacing just two passes. He also created two chances, which was one less than what he had for the entire season in the Premier League.
#9 Left-Midfield: Shinji Kagawa
The Japanese international has had a rough time ever since he joined, let alone just this season. Since his switch from Dortmund, Kagawa has not looked himself and seems out of place at Manchester United. His quality is there for all to see, but putting it into effect seems difficult to master. In what could be his final game as well, United will need to rely on a player of his quality to combat the similar breed in the opposition lineup.
Kagawa has created 16 chances in his 17 Premier League games this season and also has an astute 87% pass accuracy. Giggs’ men will need players like Kagawa to unlock what could be a stubborn door at St.Marys.
#10 Attacking-Midfield: Juan Mata
The midfield orchestrator was left out of the clash against Hull, but he will need to be restored to the lineup for this clash. The former Chelsea man has been brilliant since he signed at the club and while he may have not lit up the stage, he has gone about his work admirably and will need to start at St.Marys if his side are to get anything from the game.
Despite joining in January, Mata has the third-highest amount of chances created (32) in the United squad. He has netted five goals for the Red Devils and also has the highest pass accuracy with 89%. Money well spent.
#11 Striker: James Wilson
It is not too many times you are handed your full Premier League debut, for Manchester United, at the Theatre of Dreams. And it is not always that you score twice on your debut – something James Wilson did. The youngster will surely be crying out for another pop at the cherry and will be eager to face Southampton in United’s last game of the season.
The young striker excelled on Tuesday night and aside from finishing off two goals, he did pretty well for a debutant. His pass accuracy was decent at 67% and he also had a shot accuracy at the exact same figure. He seems like he is a finisher and United will need some of those on Sunday.
